Project Z
by FanFicFan909
Summary: A discovery outside the habitat reveals the past of one of the members.
1. Brave

**A new project I wanted to start. It won't leave my head so I'm going to force it out. This is sort of a twist on the "Rebirth" episode. Enjoy.**

**Also please take the time to answer my poll. You can choose up to five choices and I really need some other people's opinions. Thank you**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Dex Hamilton: Alien Entomologist, but I do own this story. **

**Project Z**

* * *

><p>Jenny 10 POV<p>

"Alright. Tung, I need you on animal feeding. The Arthur beetle isn't eating so if you could try and fix that that would be great. I will work on the security system device around sector 2 which leaves...Jenny." Dex ceased his cataloguing of today's household chores to look over at me. "Feel brave enough to retrieve this week's supplies in town?" The Aussie questioned me.

"Yeah, sure." I replied with a weak smile. It's not like I was scared. Well, I was, but who wouldn't be? Our neighbourhood had become less neighbour and more hood. Gangs ruled the roads and if you weren't careful, well, let's not get into that. I'm glad I was chosen to get this week's shipment. To be honest, I feel like the bravest person on my team.

The team at Hamilton Habitat consists of three entomologists. There is of course, Dex. The strong willed leader with an Australian accent who would rather die than harm an insect. Tung, the frog boy and tracker, comes from a planet where eating flies is celebrated, and the reason his nose still smells regardless of the odour released from his socks is a mystery to everyone. And then of course, there's me. Jenny 10. The last of the Jenny cloning program to be created before the project shut down and gifted with super intelligence. Together we have been rescuing alien insects from the harm of human civilisation, while the government has allowed human society to crumble at the hands of criminals.

Dex appeared to be thinking his next question over before he looked at me. "Need to bring a weapon?" A shake of my head was his response, but he grabbed my hand and placed a bulgy purple shot gun inside. I looked up at him sadly but then slipped the pistol into my holster.

"I won't be long." I smiled reassuringly up at him as he walked me to the north entrance. The door whooshed open to reveal a grey smog filled atmosphere, burnt trees standing cold in the weather and the same grey building repeated again and again down the street on the other island.

"Just hurry back." He glared at me as though he wanted me to make him promise.

"I will." I took a step outside the door. The natural Earth felt damp and squished under the pressure of my boot.

"Just don't bring home any crap, ok?" Dex yelled from the door as I walked away. I could only smile at his fatherly attitude as I began my journey.

The habitat is built on the safest area possible in this town. A large island just off the coast of the city separates us from any danger. To get to the island, one must endure an hour long boat ride on rocky waters in a small wooden paddle boat. This would probably be the highlight of my trip. I was getting better at steering it and I wanted more practice. I climbed in the boat, rested my small knapsack full of emergency supplies in the opposite seat and sat comfortably on the wooden plank. I grasped the wooden poles of the oars and began stoking them through the water.

After an hour long trip and humming the same tune over and over again in rhythm with the oars, I had finally made it to the border line of the city. My arms felt sore, but at least they weren't as sore as they had been the first time I rowed.

I invent things for my team. Mainly to help us catch insects but it is also very benefitting to invent something to help us survive. For instance, to see through this thick fog, my design of 'clear goggles' remove the fog from in front of me so I can have a clear path to walk on. Once you pass the fog barrier that surrounds the town, you no longer need the goggles, which is handy.

Fifteen minutes of solid walking and I had finally broken the barrier. I removed the goggles from my eyes and shook the hair from my face. The town hasn't changed much. The occasional blaring of a police siren can be heard in the distance and black crows sit still on the thin branches of the dead trees waiting for you to drop dead. I pull the piece of paper out from my pocket and read the address that was to be my destination, however, when I looked up at my nearest building, no numbers appeared on the broken cement surface.

"Just great," I mumbled as I let my hands fall to my sides. "How am I supposed to find it now?"

My head swivelled from left to right, until something around the corner to my left caught my attention. There was a man, no two men at the end of the alley. The appeared to be scuffing their feet on the hard concrete, probably putting out their cigarette butts in order to light a new one. I rolled my eyes in disgust and disappointment but the hair on my neck stood on end when I heard a scream.

I squinted down the alley further. They weren't scuffing their feet on the floor. They were kicking someone!

I had no idea what to do. I had never been in a fight before and I definitely had no immediate plans. I glanced at the pistol that sat in my holster. Was I really going to shoot someone? I had practiced on mannequins and posters back at the habitat, but this was an actual human being. I cleared the thoughts from my head and just ran to the entrance of the alley when another scream left the victim's mouth.

I must've run with heavy footsteps, because as I approached and stopped at the entrance, the criminals turned around and faced me, sliding closer together in an attempt to hide their victim. I held the gun out in front of me with two shaking hands and tried to steady my breathing.

"Leave them alone." I whispered, but the funny thing about alleyways is that the walls can cause even the smallest of sounds to travel long distances.

"Or what?" One of the thugs took a step closer to me and my head raced with different ideas. I took in a sharp breath aimed the gun and fired.

The wall next to the men didn't crumble completely to the ground, but it did send off enough debris to cause them to shield their eyes.

"I don't miss twice." I murmured, a little louder so the echo could amplify it some more. "Now leave them alone." I didn't realise I was holding my breath, let alone such a big breath as I let it escape when the criminals ran to safety through a perpendicular alley. I still held the gun in front of me, ready and waiting in case they decided to return with weapons. I completely forgot about the men when the victim turned over in pain on the ground. I walked over to them, but not too close in case they thought I was the one who hit them, and the person propped themselves up painfully onto their elbows. I could tell it was a boy and there was something about the way the small glimmer of light caught his blue eyes that I found mesmerising.

He grasped his head in pain, and I lowered my weapon and carefully walked over to them, but ceased abruptly when they held out their hand in a stop signal. The boy was covered in dirt and scratches, and only breathed heavily instead of speaking, his eyes full of concern and fear.

"I'm not going to hurt you." I whispered, but his gaze only travelled from me to the gun that I still held in my right hand. I looked over at the wall on my left, the crater embedded in the cement continued to release smoke from the impact. I glanced back at him, and noticed that he was staring at the handiwork of the gun as well.

Carefully, I placed the gun on the cold ground and kicked it away, watching it slide along the floor until it stopped at the parallel wall. I held my hands up in defence, and this time I did realise I was holding my breath. Never had I been this courageous before. I was weaponless, in the city, and face to face with a beaten man who for all I knew could've been the criminal and I just shot at the good guys. I knew however that this man wasn't going to hurt me. The way he clutched almost every limb in pain as he attempted to stand was enough information to me.

I couldn't help myself. I ran to his side and threw his right arm over my shoulder. It was a trifle getting him up, he was a lot heavier than me, but he finally managed to stand. After a small quiver of unsteadiness, I held him up and we stood together. My eyes fell onto my gun, and I sighed in disappointment when we walked past it and out of the alleyway.

Well, I walked. The man I had just saved was limping violently so he leaned on me until we reached the exit of the alleyway where he sat down on the curb of the street for a rest.

"Do you have a name?" I questioned the stranger, but my only response was a shrug from underneath his torn, blood and mud stained white shirt.

"Where is your ID tag?" I continued to interrogate my new find. The boy shook his head, the brown hair encrusted with dried mud held it perfectly still. I gave myself a worried and quizzical look. No one ever goes anywhere without their ID tag.

"Do you have a home?" This was my final question. If this guy didn't live anywhere, I definitely had to do something about it. He stared up at me; blue eyes glazed over in tears that looked as though he was fighting to keep them from falling, and then dropped his head down to his brown shoes.

I had had enough. I stood up, adjusted my knapsack on my back and held out my hand to this stranger. He only looked from my face, down to my hand, and then back to my face in a befuddled look.

"Come on. I'll take you somewhere we can fix you and clean you up." Being the proud, silent person he was, the boy attempted to stand himself, and being the impatient person I was, I quickly grabbed his hand, placed his right arm over my shoulders and pulled him to a standing position.

We hobbled over to the coast where I had stationed the boat. It's funny; the boy never looked at me throughout our whole journey. I just assumed that he was embarrassed because a girl had saved his life. Personally I didn't care. I was glad I had saved someone's life and I am sure the team...

Oh no. The team.

I hadn't thought about them. Dex flipped the last time I bought a stray dog home, so what's he going to say about a stray human?

I shook the thought out of my head. That's when I noticed out of the corner of my eye, the boy was staring at me, but I stopped myself from staring back. Dex would have to help this guy. He is a person after all and I'm sure once we fix him he can find a home and start a fresh life.

The boat lapped gently in the water at the ocean's edge. I dropped his arm off my shoulders and walked towards the boat. He stood oddly on the beach watching me as I put my knapsack in the boat. I turned around to face him and held out my hand to help him in. He shook his head, reluctant to trust anyone. Gosh I felt so sorry for this guy. I can't even imagine the life he must've had before I helped him.

"I'm not going to hurt you." I repeated. "But I'm not going to leave until you come with me." I hoped the sly grin on my face was portrayed as playful, but the stranger only looked around, from left to right in swift movements of his head. I turned around and pointed to the habitat.

"That's where we're going." I turned back and found his mouth ajar, mesmerized by the size of the building. I felt proud that he was admiring the structure, after all, it was my design and I did build most of it. I pulled his arm over my shoulders, this time he was more co operative and we staggered down to the boat. I placed him in the opposite seat and I took my driving seat, grasping the wooden oars in my hands.

I started to paddle the boat. It's a lot harder when there are more people in it. After five minutes we had moved a very small distance, and that is when the boy stood up and made a gesture to me to swap seats.

"No I got it. You're in no shape to be doing...anything." Unfortunately he wouldn't take no for an answer and continued to come across to my seat. I didn't want to argue either. My shoulders had been so sore from carrying this guy and rowing was just going to make it worse. We switched seats, and he grasped the poles of the oars in his hands.

Remember how I told you the boat ride was an hour long? Well, not when this guy is driving. The speed he brought the boat up to was phenomenal and I watched the foam build up in the water which for once, did not come from the ocean itself. We arrived in fifteen minutes, and I could only stare. Realising the strength that this guy had, I suddenly became nervous as I realised what this boy could've done to me in the alley, injured or not. I realised I was still staring at him when he dropped his head in an embarrassed attitude. I shook the thoughts from my head, pulled my knapsack on and stood up in the boat.

"Great job." I congratulated him, but he looked at me with a confused expression as though he had never heard those words before. I reached out my hand and he finally accepted it. We struggled to get out of the boat considering its constant movements, but eventually we were on the habitat's island and heading for the north entrance.

"Dex?" I questioned through my wrist com, and almost instantly the picture of my boss appeared with a worried look.

"Jenny, is everything alright? Are you hurt? We're coming to get you." He was about to sign off before I stopped him.

"No Dex, I'm fine. Can you meet me at the north entrance please?" Dex stopped getting ready and leaned closer into the screen.

"Are you back already? That's impossible. You haven't even been gone for two hours."

"Yeah." I started. "That's what I need to talk to you about. North entrance please." And with that, he signed off. I turned to the boy, and noticed that he had been staring at me, and that's when I realised I had forgotten to introduce myself, even though he couldn't say it back.

"I'm Jenny, by the way. Jenny 10." I smiled gently towards him, but his gaze fell on to my wrist com. "Oh this. These are our wrist coms. They keep all the members at the habitat in touch. I made them." His eyes shot to mine in shock, and I almost felt proud that he found it so interesting.

Perfect timing is always a good thing to have. When you really need something, perfect timing can be a fortunate solution. Just as I reached the door, it opened to reveal Dex, a concerned look on his face. My eyes darted to the boy who was leaning on me and it was then that I realised the stranger had fainted. I struggled with his weight, which Dex noticed, so he grabbed the boy and flung him over his shoulder unconscious. Perfect timing.

"So, who's this?" He asked casually with an unimpressed expression.

"I found him." I whimpered almost in fear.

"What did I tell you about bringing home crap?" Dex asked as he adjusted to man on his left shoulder.

"I couldn't leave him there." I began. "He was being beaten by these guys and he has no name, home or ID tag." Dex pondered the situation before stepping aside so I could enter.

"Well, I would've done the same thing in your situation." I smiled brightly at my boss. He was such a father figure. "Let's get inside and fix him up. Find out where he belongs."

I nodded happily and we both walked down the corridor to the medical centre.


	2. Irregularities

**Sorry I have kept you waiting, busy with school work. **

**This chapter dedicated to TrueLoveIsReal. Thank you for your support. And thank you to everyone else who has reviewed and added this story on alert. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Dex Hamilton: Alien Entomologist, but I do own this story. **

* * *

><p>The leader furrowed his brow as he gazed down at the unconscious victim. The boy had been set down on the medical bed by Dex for an examination. Cuts, scrapes and bruises scattered his body.<p>

"So, you just found him?" Dex continued to interrogate his employee about her recent discovery in town.

"Yep" she answered in a bored manner as she lined up all the necessary tools needed to fix up the patient.

"And how did you get back in less than two hours?" The leader of the entomologist team questioned the clone. Jenny looked up at him and held out a pair of sharp scissors.

"I already told you, this guy has phenomenal strength." Jenny grabbed the hem of the boy's shirt and began cutting the mud and blood encrusted material with ease. The final seam of the white shirt tore and was removed from his pale skin. Inside was much worse.

Large gashes, scars and many unhealed wounds caressed the grooves and lines that accompanied this man's physique. Jenny seethed through her teeth and knotted her brows in sympathy at the sight. Wringing a sponge out in the bucket next to her, the clone threw the object at her boss, which he caught with ease.

"Grab a sponge." She muttered before wringing out one for herself.

"This the new guy?" Tung questioned as he walked into the medical centre. Dex and Jenny snapped their heads in the frog boy's direction holding sponges that were now tainted red.

"He's not joining us Tung," Dex began in a serious tone as he continued to mop at the copious amount of blood. "We just need to fix him up and then find him a home."

Tung continued to examine the patient. "What's his name?"

"He doesn't have one." Jenny 10 replied as she soaked the red sponge in the bucket.

"Who doesn't have a name?" The tracker raised his eyebrow at his team members.

"This guy, obviously. But he won't stay like that for long." Dex began in his authoritative tone. "We're going to find out who he is and send him back to where he came from, right Jenny?" The leader shot his engineer a stern glare while placing his red sponge back into the bucket with a splash. Jenny darted her eyes to the red ones of her boss, before casting her gaze away in a guilty fashion.

"Right." She mumbled softly as she inserted the syringe into the inside nook of his elbow. This task had to be completed with alien insects on a regular basis at the habitat, but to do this on a human; Jenny couldn't help but feel her stomach twist into a knot as the tick red blood oozed into the tiny clear tube. Her green eyes narrowed to the small sample before walking over to her computer.

"Blood looks a little thick," Jenny inquired. "I better check it for any medical irregularities."

She decided to ignore the loud sigh of exasperation from her boss as she placed the sample into the analyser.

"He looks a little strange." Tung voiced his opinion to his boss. Dex only chuckled at his tracker's comments.

"That's rich coming from a half frog-half human." Jenny giggled, her eyes never leaving the flashing images of the computer screen. After a few more flashes the team was startled as sirens blared and lights began to blink.

"What on Earth is that?" Tung questioned to his team, his eyes scrunched up and his hands placed on his ears.

"I don't know," Jenny slammed her finger on the multiple keyboards. She managed to cease the noise and lights, but the cause for the problem was still unknown to the clone.

"What...wh-" Jenny's muttering has cut short as a large image of the unknown boy appeared on the screen with an accompanying image of schematics.

"What's that?" Dex questioned the girl as he approached the computer, honest curiosity laced in his words.

"I'm not sure." The blue haired girl removed herself from her seat and stood in between her boss and Tung. The screen continued to flash, colours spilling over the astonished faces of the team at Hamilton Habitat.

* * *

><p>The image of the stranger grew to a full size on the screen; small annotated boxes appeared, pointing at various spots on the man's silhouette.<p>

"What does this all mean?" Dex began, but was silenced as Jenny put her hand up to silence him.

"Developmental prototype." Jenny read from the top of the screen.

It's always good to know what to expect. Some surprises can be very inconvenient, exciting, confusing and even shocking. As the team stood there watching all the information of this stranger spill out onto the monitor, they couldn't help but feel that this scenario was unexpected. Here they had a stranger, rescued from the verge of death without any knowledge of his own history and yet, he was seen by each member of the team differently.

To Dex, this stranger was an inconvenience. The team was struggling with the caring of the insects as it was and the leader couldn't help but feel that this boy's timing was imperfect. To Jenny, this new discovery was exciting; a new adventure and a chance to help someone. She couldn't help but feel sorry for this guy; beaten in the street and without direction. But that aside, she was excited for a chance to feel useful and help someone in need. To the final member of the team, Tung found this new development confusing. The large words flashing across the screen brought a perplexed look to the green frog-boys features. Fortunately he did not stay confused as Jenny read more from the monitor.

But to all team members, this event shocked everyone as more and more information was given to them on the screen.

"Added growth hormones for increased strength and improved stability for...for flight?" Jenny questioned the monitor's words as she read the little box.

"Flight, what does that mean?" Tung queried his team. Jenny had already resumed her seat in front of the monitor and began pressing the keys. The image of the mystery man turned around and presented small slits where the beginning of his wings started.

"What does it mean?" Tung began to yell, frustrated that he could not understand what was going on. Jenny and Dex shared a knowing look before the clone spoke up.

"Dex, do you want to-" her eyes darted over the stranger and back to Dex, her voice unable to finish her sentence. Fortunately for her, Dex understood and made his way over to the clean medical patient. With delicate precaution, Dex lifted the stranger, just high enough to see the small silver layers of membrane from his back.

"The dude can fly?" Tung analysed the wings on the man's back as Dex lowered the patient back down to a resting position.

"Improved vision, can carry ten times his wait, but percentage of DNA states that...Dex-" Jenny began, her eyes meeting her employers. "This guy is an...insect hybrid."

"Struth," Dex whispered as he rubbed the back on his neck. "Ok, so the first stranger we bring in is a dangerous...whatever he is, and we're stuck with finding his home."

"It shouldn't be that difficult." Tung began as he stared at the patient with suspicion. "How many people in Metro City are missing a bug boy?"

Dex gave Tung an unimpressed expression to his tracker before turning to look over at Jenny. She had her head downcast, scuffing her foot on the shiny floor and fiddling with her fingers. As much as she tried, she could not avoid the gaze that her boss was giving.

"Jenny-" The team leader began, but ceased when she suddenly shot her head up.

"Don't start Dex. I admit we've found some...irregularities in him and I have no idea why the files appeared with the blood analysis but this guy-"

"Jenny this thing is dangerous. He could've hurt you but you were stubborn enough to risk your life." The leader sighed and rested his hand on the edge of the medical bed. Quiet tears began to prick at the corner of Jenny's eyes. "He's still asleep, so we still have time to take him to the nearest hospital and out of our hair."

"No." Her blunt reply startled Dex.

"I'm sorry?"

"Dex I promised this guy when I found him that I wouldn't hurt him, whether or not he understood me. Putting this guy in the hospital is risking his life. Do you know what they would do if they found out about his...irregularities." By this point, Jenny had approached her boss and both were standing on opposite sides of the medical bed.

" Jenny I just-"

"Dudes?" Both team members were interrupted with Tung's bid for their attention.

"What is it, Tung?" Dex questioned the frog boy.

"He's waking up."

* * *

><p><strong>Not as many words in this chapter, and it was mostly talking, but I think it's going somewhere. Thank you so much for waiting so patiently for this update. Don't forget to review. <strong>


	3. Identification

**The next update, so sorry to keep you all waiting but the other stories have kept me busy. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Dex Hamilton, feels weird to say it calmly on this. **

* * *

><p>A twitch.<p>

A groan.

A small movement.

A moan.

The boy, resting in the small hospital cot, moved his head slightly, his lips mumbling something incoherent and inaudible.

The three team members leaned over the patient, eager to see what will happen next.

His eyes snapped open instantly, startling the crew backwards from the cot, so much so that the small tracker tumbled down to the floor in a bounce. The stranger tried to resist, moving violently against the restraints that had been put in place at his wrists and ankles thanks to the engineer.

"Quick, give him the sedative," Dex ordered to the clone. Jenny grasped the needle in her hand and with great difficulty, injected the serum in to the patient's arm. He gasped in pain before calming down to an almost comatose state. With trembling arms, the engineer removed the syringe and analysed it.

"I think I gave him the wrong injection," she spoke in shock while observing the needle. "This one's a sedative for dangerous insects."

"That's fine," Dex reassured with his hands on his hips. "I mean, that's what he is, right?"

He walked towards the patient with caution, leaving his hands on his hips as a sign of dominance. The leader bent over the cot, staring intently in to the stranger's eyes.

"Do you speak English?" he questioned; his voice loud and slow in case his conversationalist could not understand. With his body lying perfectly still, the boy meekly nodded his head.

"How many fingers am I holding up?" the leader asked while extending two fingers in front of the other's face.

"T…two," his voice was raspy as he coughed clouds of dust out of his mouth. He cleared his throat once again before collapsing back in to the cot.

"Well at least his vision hasn't been affected." He momentarily stared at his team before turning to the stranger. "What's your name?" this question left the guest stumped. In a sudden movement, he flicked his head from side to side in an attempt to see where he was.

His eyes fell to Tung, the tracker narrowing his gaze in suspicion. The boy only turned his nose up in confusion. He turned his head to the other side, eyes falling to Jenny. The engineer stared back with a vacant and worried expression, the patient appearing to sigh when he saw her. Dex cleared his throat, bringing the boy's attention back to the leader.

"Do you know your name?" Dex repeated, furrowing his brow. His suspicions were confirmed when the patient shook his head sadly.

"I'm going to set you free," the leader began, causing the boy to tense in determination. Dex held up a warning finger pointed at the patient. "But we can easily bring you down if you try anything on the team." Tung and Jenny exchanged nervous looks; that's the first time they'd ever heard Dex's voice reach so low.

"Jenny, come and unshackle him."

* * *

><p>The boy stood straight in the centre of the control room, Dex pacing in front as though analysing the specimen in front of him. Because the team had destroyed his blood and mud embedded shirt when he came in, Tung had been sent on a mission to retrieve a temporary uniform for the momentary guest. His task was a success as he found a black flight jacket that matched the stranger's black pants perfectly. Dex was surprisingly impressed. His eyes wandered over the boy in thought.<p>

'Why is he standing like that?' the leader thought deeply once he stopped pacing. All he had said was 'stand still', and the stranger had obliged with immediate action, standing straight with his arms by his sides and an intense stare plastered on his face.

Tung had left to see if he could get the Arthur beetle to eat; despite all the excitement going on, there were still jobs to be done in the habitat. Jenny was left to do the job she was programmed to do, manipulate technology to get what she needed. Pressing the keys as quickly as she could, many internet pages flashed on the screen that could hopefully give off any information useful in locating the source of this person.

"Have you found anything?" the leader questioned, his gaze not leaving the strange bug hybrid. She pressed a final button that caused the monitor to flick through multiple pages at a time, sighing in exhaustion.

"It'll be a while," she explained as the clone left her seat and joined her boss. The stranger's vacant stare into the distance never broke, unsettling the nerves of the two entomologists.

"What's he doing?" Jenny leaned over and whispered to Dex, covering her mouth with her hand.

"Wish I knew," he whispered back. "I just told him to stand still and he snapped straight like a robot."

Jenny's mouth pouted in thought. "Could you get my analy-ray from my lab? If this guy has any gears or gizmos inside him, the scanner will tell us." The leader nodded before making his way to the door.

"Oh and be careful, some of the cords aren't connected properly to some of the devices, don't zap yourself," Dex's shoulders jumped slightly in shock, his gaze falling behind Jenny. The clone tuned around and gasped slightly in shock herself at the boy. His stance remained the same, as well as his concentration, the only thing that was different was now, the stranger's right hand was raised to his face in a salute. Dex edged back in to the room, pulling Jenny away from the boy by her shoulders.

"Or maybe he's a soldier," Dex pondered in a whisper. The clone craned her head so she could meet the gaze of the leader.

"A soldier?" Jenny questioned with curiosity. With a quick curl of the lips, the engineer sucked in her breath before bellowing an order.

"At ease," as if on cue, the boy returned to his original stance, startling the two team members.

"Jenny," Dex whispered in a hushed tone in her ear. "What did you bring to my habitat?"

"I don't know," she whispered back, both cowering at the unknown specimen in front of them. "But at least he's not going on a rampage."

"Why did he salute?" Dex asked, releasing his grip from the clone.

"Not sure, did you do something?"

"It wasn't me," the leader began to explain, moving in between the clone and the bug. "He responded to you when you said something."

"Well what did I say when he-" Jenny began, but was cut off by Dex's frustrated voice rising above hers.

"It doesn't matter," he moved around and pushed the girl closer to the boy, the latter's stance still at ease. "Just repeat what you said."

She breathed out slowly, trying to be as confident as possible. "Oh and be careful, some of the cords aren't connected properly to some of the devices, don't zap-"

His hand flew up to his right temple once again, shocking Dex and Jenny. A curious expression fell on Jenny.

"At ease," she repeated, the boy removing his hand and bringing his feet back together.

"Zap," just as she suspected, the boy brought his hand back up to his face.

"Aim," she ordered again. The boy brought his hands in front of him, holding them as if a pistol was in his hands. He blinked a few times before allowing his hands to slowly relax, staring in disbelief at his actions. Jenny and Dex were doing the same, taking a step backwards in fear.

"Well, Dex whispered in a whimper. "At least we have something to call him by now." The bug boy looked up at Dex when the words left the entomologists mouth, breathing heavily as though petrified himself. Quickly, he pulled himself back in to attention, his head hanging slightly in shame. The other entomologists relaxed a little, reading and understanding the expression on the guest's face.

"Well…Zap," the bug boy raised his head at her words. "Do you know where you live?"

His head shook slowly once again, eyes returning to the floor. Dex walked up to the boy, placing his hand on his shoulder. The stranger quivered slightly, but recovered quickly.

"Zap, we're going to find out where you belong," he reassured, a more fatherly voice than anything heard today. "For now, you can stay here, but one toe out of line; I won't be afraid to send you back to Metro City."

Zap's eyes grew wide at the thought, before saluting his new leader.

"Jenny, can you create his ID tag. Just put general information on for now," Dex turned and smiled slightly at the engineer. "I'm glad we found out his name."

* * *

><p><strong>Thank you all for waiting so patiently, tell me what you think. R&amp;R!<strong>


	4. Skill

**Here it is as promised. I feel like I don't have to apologise as much to you all compared to my other fandom stories for not updating these stories within a year because you're the only fandom I was still giving work to for an entire year. I've been watching the episodes on TV (they've finished now; they were brilliant) so I've had some good inspiration and re-characterisation installed. However, this story is quite AU considering Zap's character. Anywho, enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: Oh my God!**

* * *

><p>The clone sat deep in thought, a smile gracing her lips as she completed the simple task. Her fingers danced in front of the computer, filling in the empty details for a general ID tag. She turned to the boy sitting next to her, the latter remaining quiet as his blue eyes ran over everything she wrote.<p>

"So, are you okay with being called Zap for the time being?" she asked, glancing to him from the corner of her eye. She caught him nodding his head.

"And, since an address of residency is required on these, I suppose…we'll just put you down for here?" the engineer turned in her seat, awaiting his approval on her suggestion. The guest merely shuffled in his seat, exhaling quietly as he muttered the word 'fine'.

"I'm really sorry about all this. I know how it feels," the girl began, delivering a sympathetic look. He met her gaze, eyes searching hers as though for answers.

"Don't worry about it," he mumbled, waving a modest hand. Jenny nodded softly, before turning back to the computer.

"I'm also going to start a search for military experimenters and gene splicers. Hopefully they might join to some leads about where you're from."

"Jenny?" the clone hummed in recognition at Dex's request. "You…didn't happen to bring back the supplies as well, did you?"

The girl froze in her seat, turning slowly away from the computer so that she was facing the entomologist. A heavy blush spread across her cheeks as she remembered her initial mission.

"No, I was-" her green eyes darted back to the boy, who remained intently staring at the screen. "-preoccupied…with other things."

Dex nodded solemnly before returning his gaze to the clipboard in hand. "Well, someone needs to go and collect it."

"I'll get it."

He inhaled slowly through his teeth, darting his eyes between Jenny and Zap. Two choices loomed within the mind of the entomologist. If he allowed Jenny to go and retrieve the supplies, who knows what she would bring back a second time, plus it was a risk sending her out when there were people like this boy out there. On the other hand, if Dex went himself, what would happen to his habitat and his crew if he left them in the hands of…it?

"I don't know…"

"Come on, Dex. I'll be fine," the girl bounced out of her seat and approached the leader. He voice dropped to a whisper. "I'll be quick too if you let me take the ship."

Dex sighed loudly. "No Jenny, you know why we can't do that."

"Please Dex, I've been working on it," her hands entwined her fingers in a tight plea. "I promise you it'll fly. I've been testing its thrust and drag levels in the cargo bay and I think-"

"Oh, struth Jenny. I told you we can't be flying something that big around, especially when it's unregistered, not to mention incredibly unsafe. We'll be caught for sure."

"But I-"

"Look, I know you're a great engineer," he comforted, placing a hand on her shoulder. From the sidelines, the boy in black spun around in his chair in a bid to listen to the hushed conversation. "It's just too risky in our environment. The first and last thing I would prefer you to do is take the boat again, but right now, I'm just wondering whether or not they could possibly deliver to us."

"I could go with her," both the leader and the engineer snapped their heads in the direction of the voice. Zap was standing with his hands in his pockets, a soft expression aimed at Dex.

"Look, with all due respect, I'm not quite sure I'm comfortable with-"

"If he comes with me, it won't take me hours to travel in the boat," Jenny explained, standing next to Dex's shoulder. She crossed her arms over her chest and smiled towards Zap. "Not to mention, if you're so afraid of me being alone out there, he could be my own personal, military bodyguard."

Dex hummed in thought, bringing his hand under his chin. It did seem fairly reasonable, but then again, there were still risks with the actions.

"Ok, but you better-"

"Well, see you within the hour," Jenny replied smugly, gripping on to the boy's shoulder and pulling him out of the room. The leader was left by his lonesome, inhaling deeply as worry and concern crossed his thoughts.

* * *

><p>"This…doesn't seem like the way to the boat," the boy voiced his opinion as the pair paced down a dark hallway. The engineer, with one hand firmly gripping her knapsack strap, kept a straight and determined face in the desired direction.<p>

"I know," was all she said, confusing the guest further.

"I thought that Dex guy said we're taking the boat," he said, but to no avail. He stopped dead in his tracks when they approached a heavy metal door. "Shouldn't we go to the boat if we're taking the boat?"

"Not if we're not taking the boat," Jenny answered bluntly. She raised a yellow finger forward, activating the button on the adjacent wall. The doors in front of them slid apart with a groan, indicating that they had been unused in quite some time. The stranger's jaw dropped at the sight.

"Isn't it great?" Jenny asked rhetorically as she strolled forward, giving the boy an excellent measurement of exactly how big the ship was in front of them by comparing it to the engineer. He walked forward in awe, large eyes taking in every single detail. "I've been working on it for a while now, I really think it's ready to take out."

"But, won't you get arrested for an unregistered ship?" he repeated what he had heard, not expecting the girl to shrug in a manner of uncaring.

"Not if we're quick. Now come on," she ran up the ramp inside, followed quickly by Zap.

The helm of the craft was dusty, with the exception of heavily used places from the girl, mainly the space underneath the dash of the driver's seat. Jenny strode quickly to the front of the ship, dropping her bag at her feet as she settled in to the chair. Zap followed her actions, taking the passenger seat and buckling up immediately.

"I think I can get this to start quietly if I just," she ceased her words, focusing all energy on slowly switching a level in the opposite direction. She winced as a jet made a low rumbling sound. "Ok, and now we just…fly."

Her hands placed themselves delicately on the green glowing orbs of the steering wheel, and very gently, she pulled them upwards to the now open roof. Their stomachs lurched at the sensation, but was hardly felt over the excitement from the girl piloting.

"Yes, I told him it would fly," she said proudly, poking her tongue out as she manoeuvred the ship carefully. It jolted to the side, shaking a little as the engineer straightened it up. "Sorry, I guess I don't have that much experience flying this thing."

Zap shot his blue eyes to her subtly, narrowing at her paled face. "And, I take it you don't go behind Dex's orders that often?"

"Nope," she swallowed loudly. "This would be the first. So, instead of letting myself think about what could happen if we get caught, let's just find this address."

"How can you find the address from up here?"

"I have some inside help," she flipped open her wristcom, and an image of a large, orange-eyed person formed on her screen. "Habi, get them to send the package up to the roof then set off your beacon."

The person on the screen saluted before signing off spreading a smirk on the blue-haired girl's lips. Her gaze glanced to Zap, recognising his confusion almost immediately.

"Habi is my robot; I made him. I've sent him ahead to a friend who works in this delivery business, and…" her voice trailed off as a continuous beeping echoed from a monitor. "…that would be his signal. The building should be a little ways east."

The ship swerved at Jenny's touch, moving sharply with her jerking movements as it approached its target. The blinking light on the green monitor grew stronger more so. The clone stretched her neck outwards, craning her head to see over the dash.

"There he is," Zap looked out of the windshield too, only to spy a large crate sitting atop a skyscraper. The ship jerked and jumped closer, Jenny cursing under her breath. "Sorry, I have to try and get the winch as close to the crate as I can. This isn't going to be easy."

A length of rope descended from the craft, swaying in the wind as a result of the ship. Zap stood up from his seat, noticing still that the engineer kept her tongue sticking out of her mouth as she concentrated.

"Just a little more…" the rope below waved violently, completely outshooting its target of the crate. The clone brought her hands to her temples as she growled in frustration. "Urgh, this is too hard."

"May I?" the boy asked, resting one hand on his chest and the other on to one of the steering spheres. Jenny looked up at him from her seat, a new expression of worry crossing her features.

"Look, not only is this Dex's ship, it's also his fathers, and if he found out someone he didn't know flew it, he'd kick you back to the streets for sure."

"What he doesn't know won't hurt him," he argued, stealing glances to the windscreen. Habibot had now flown up to them, tapping his claws on the glass to get their attention. "Please, let me try."

Her green eyes connected with his, and with a final sigh, the clone unbuckled her seatbelt and left the chair. What was so mesmerising about those eyes?

He took the pilot's seat, before staring quizzically at the numerous controls. Jenny's stomach knotted in worry at the sight. Just as she was about to intervene, Zap let his hands fall on to the controls and tilt them at an angle, gracefully steering the ship over the square roof of the building. It rotated in the air, waving a steady piece of rope over the large crate.

"Habi, attach the crate to us. Follow it when you're done," Jenny announced in to her communicator. She shut the lid with a satisfied smirk, watching out of the windscreen as their package ascended to them. "I have to say, that was some good work."

"Would you mind if I flew us back?" he asked, the engineer detecting the slightest hint of excitement in his voice.

"Of course you can," she replied, standing up and heading towards the cargo bay. "Just make sure Dex can't seeing us re-entering the habitat."

"Aye, aye."

The apparatus was secured in storage, and once given the all clear, Zap began piloting the craft gently back in the direction the came from. It glided through the air in smooth movements at his touch, but an immediate cut off in the jet engines shook it out of its flight.

"We've lost both engines," Jenny cried loudly, her fingers tapping practically every single button in front of her. The ship lurched forward in to a dive. "We're losing altitude. I've got to get the engine's working again."

"Is this the control to the clutch?" he pointed to a lever at his side. Jenny looked down at it with a furrowed brow, nodding rapidly to answer him. He gripped it tightly, pumping it up and down until a resistance was felt in its movement. "Hang on."

He pulled the lever up as far as it could reach, and using his foot, activated the hyper drive accelerator.

Blue gas exploded out from the exterior of the ship, bringing it level in to flight once again. Jenny sat in the passenger seat, gripping on to the cushion underneath. "Where did you learn that?"

"This ship is designed almost identically to-" he was cut off, the rest of his sentence wiped clean from his mind. He shared a worried glance with the passenger, both with wide eyes. "I don't know."

"Well, that was really impressive," she said, allowing a smile to spread. "But I hate to put a downer on things. We need to get to the habitat immediately before the engines blow, which they will."

"I don't think so," Zap swayed the steering wheel gently, hardly moving the ship at all. The habitat came in to view. "It seems pretty stable to me."

"Give it a minute," she replied smugly as the loading bay doors opened beneath them. The moment they had entered, the craft rattled violently, receiving the force of the explosion. Jenny pressed a button on the dash, activating the ship's flotation mechanism beneath it. They landed with a loud crash, softened only by the yellow rubber boats attached below. Jenny winced at the contact, though for a completely different reason.

"There's no doubt that Dex didn't hear that, right?" she asked, her tone quavering in anxiety. Zap turned his head slowly to her, shaking his head in the same manner. Jenny's wristcom snapped open, revealing a very angered leader.

"Jenny, can I talk to you please?"

* * *

><p><strong>R&amp;R! <strong>


End file.
